Feb. 23rd, 2013

Whisper Your Name Into the Sky (Ben Grimm-Matt Murdock | PG13 | 3,537 words): A look at how Ben and Matt might be friends. And it's a really neat, insightful look with Ben's insecurities and Matt's unique perception of Ben. I wouldn't immediately have thought they could be close friends, but this fic deftly shows how they can relate to each other.

Excerpt:Matt sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. There was not enough beer in the bar to make this seem like a good idea. Very possibly, not enough beer in the world. "Just to get this straight, you're asking me to feel you--because I'm blind--to see if you feel more attractive than you look. Because you think I know how you look. And you think your blind girlfriend will care."

"You got a problem with that?" Ben asked. "It's not like it's hard."

Matt spread his hands. "Just wanted to make sure we're on the same page." His lips quirked. "The same weird, vaguely inappropriate, apparently Braille page, at that."

The Waiting Room (Buffy-Death | PG | 1,617 words): Buffy meets Death. There are a lot of stories out there where a character meets Death (either the Sandman version as here or the Discworld one) and they run the emotional gamut. This particular one is on the bittersweet end of the scale because Buffy's still got some fantastic and some terrible things ahead of her. But it's comforting in a way, despite knowing what's coming, because at least Buffy has someone friendly on the other side of it all.

Excerpt:"Hey," [Buffy] says to the girl sitting next to her.

"Hey," says the girl, and smiles. But she doesn't say anything else; she just sits there, staring at Buffy without a hint of rudeness.

Nigiri She Said (Nase, Akari | G | 504 words): Nase meets Akari. This is such a cute first meeting! Akari especially shines, even given her few lines.

Excerpt:There’s a girl in a high school uniform tagging along after Shindou as he crosses the Ki-in foyer; a slim girl with bright eyes and gallons of hair. She’s talking to him but he seems to be more or less ignoring her. Nase wonders who she is, a friend or a fangirl.